
Photographing wild sea turtles on the reef
My time as a Reefscapers marine biology intern has come to an end in the Maldives, but I still have some adventures to share from my final month working at Landaa Giravaaru. (You can find my Chapter #2 here).
This month, I was able to present my Masters’ thesis (toxicology in loggerhead turtles in the Canary Islands), and I can now finally say that I am a marine biologist. It has been a dream of mine to finish this chapter of my career, and achieved while working here as a marine biologist… a real accomplishment!

I’ve been spending many hours underwater!

Weekly checkup, weigh-in and clean for our turtle patients
I continued working with the stranded sea turtle patients here at Landaa, from feeding and cleaning, to helping with various research projects. I’m going to miss them when I’m gone! We recently took two of our turtle patients, Maw and Artemis, out to the ocean enclosure to help their rehabilitation, where they have extra space in a more natural environment.

One of the most special moments of this month was the PADI Women’s Dive Day. All the girls from Reefscapers and Manta Trust joined the dive centre for two dives. The dives were amazing as we saw so much marine life, from mantas and eagle rays to green and hawksbill turtles, black tip reef sharks, different species of fish, and a lot of invertebrates. To commemorate the day, we also made a special boat-shaped coral frame.

Regular monitoring and maintenance of our Reefscapers coral frames

We make occasional bespoke custom reef designs (this one to mark PADI Womens’ Day)
I ended my month building many new coral frames with Resort guests, swimming with lots of mantas in Hanifaru Bay, and going on my first manta ID trip. We also encountered hundreds of cetaceans on the dolphin cruises, and spent a lot of time in the water surrounded by so many different marine species.

My time at Reefscapers has taught me so much. During these three short but busy months, I was able to learn many new things about marine creatures and ocean conservation, and I improved my skills, embraced a new culture, and met some great people. I thank everyone at Marine Savers for embracing me as part of their team, and for all their patience and knowledge shared.
I will always be grateful for this opportunity.
Mônica de Luna 🌊


Do you want to experience life as a marine biologist
here in the Maldives ?
Head over to our Employment page to read about the different ways you can work with us - full time, apprentice or intern.
And see more from our Interns in their very own words & photos as part of our Diary / Blog series.